Donald Trump made huge gains in deep blue Massachusetts because of voter discontent over illegal immigrants and inflation, analysts say.
While the president-elect failed to flip the reliably Democratic state, he did outperform compared to his previous results there.
Trump improved his 2020 performance by four percentage points and even scored a victory in 12 communities.
In the Massachusetts State House of Representatives, the Republican Party managed to gain a legislative seat, unseating a veteran Democrat.
“Ultimately what yesterday’s results say is that Republicans were more focused on the issues that matter to people,” said Republican pollster Jon McHenry. Boston Globe.
According to analysts, Donald Trump made huge gains in deep, blue Massachusetts because of his messages on illegal immigrants and inflation. Pictured is Hyannis on Cape Cod.
“They are very focused on the economy and very focused on illegal immigration, which has had a huge impact on Massachusetts.”
Locals also told the outlet that the border had become a hot topic for them.
“I feel like a lot of (immigrants) come here and get food stamps and housing and all that stuff that should go to other people who live here,” Matt Johnson, 36, of Norfolk.
Massachusetts Democratic Gov. Maura Healey sharply criticized then-President Trump in 2017 for his decision to withdraw federal funding from “sanctuary cities,” including Boston.
But earlier this year, he traveled to Texas to urge migrants not to travel to the Bay State after local services struggled to cope with a huge surge of people crossing the border.
Louis Murray, 59, of West Roxbury, is a strong Trump supporter and said Massachusetts is now a “border state.”
He added that Democrats “completely opened the border.” . . . So you can’t double down on the border and not expect people to react.”
The influx of illegal immigrants has caused tensions in some parts of the state. In Stoughton, parents were left furious after budget cuts led to school bus services being scrapped but transport services for asylum seekers were maintained.
In August, it was reported that around 50,000 illegal immigrants had entered Massachusetts since Joe Biden took office in 2021.
The situation became so dire that migrants were held in emergency shelters at Logan Airport until they, too, began to overflow.
Many voters were motivated by Trump’s promises on immigration after becoming
Massachusetts has taken in more than 50,000 illegal immigrants in the past four years, many of whom had to be temporarily housed at Logan Airport (pictured).
Trump got about 48,000 more votes in Massachusetts in this election compared to 2020, equal to 36 and 32 percent of the vote respectively.
He won a majority in nearly 80 of the state’s 351 congressional districts, some of which tilted in his favor.
Much of the support came from rural areas and places near the Connecticut border, such as southeastern Massachusetts, where Kelly Dooner won the state Senate race over Democrat Marc Pacheco.
Dooner ran in Taunton, making headlines after the city sued a local hotel for housing too many immigrants.
Elsewhere, economic issues appeared to have influenced the Republican vote in Massachusetts.
“Many American workers and hardworking Massachusetts residents do not feel their concerns are heard,” said Republican Chairwoman Amy Carnevale.
For Bostonian Frank Kenny, 54, rising inflation helped swing his vote toward Trump.
Other voters cited Trump’s promises to lower the average American’s cost of living as their reason for voting.
“People were saying Trump is an animal and all that, the media just ruined it,” Kenny said. ‘But things were better (under Trump). People were making money.’
A Forbes study earlier this year estimated the cost of living in Massachusetts at $50,000 a year, making it the second highest in the United States.
Other voters cited Trump’s perceived strength on foreign policy as the reason for their vote.
The situation in Massachusetts was repeated in other parts of New England, which normally leans blue, as Trump advanced in Maine and Rhode Island.
Even in New York, a Democratic stronghold, Trump saw a massive 12-point improvement in his margin over Biden in 2020.